Since processors, and especially microprocessors, are the heart of computers, they may have dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of electrical contacts, which makes it quite difficult to properly install and remove these processors. Frequently, damage occurs to the contact pins on the processor, either on the underside of the processor in the case of Pin Grid Array (PGA) processors, or on the system board, in the case of Land Grid Array processors (LGA). High costs are associated with testing, diagnosing, and replacing damaged processors, and even higher costs are associated with testing, diagnosing, and replacing circuit boards with damaged LGA sockets. Therefore, handling of these processors is a concern from manufacturing, servicing, and upgrading perspectives and invokes serious warranty considerations when damage occurs.
In order to offset the high costs of correcting the problems associated with damaged processors and/or circuit boards, installation tools have been developed which help with proper placement and installation/removal of processors, which have resulted in varying levels of effectiveness.
Referring to FIGS. 1A-1C, some processor placement tools are described, according to the prior art. In FIG. 1A, a basic suction/vacuum tool 110 is shown, which are presently available that can lift and release parts, like processors, for removal and installation. However, while these tools are versatile and may be used for many different application beyond processor placement and removal, they also have serious drawbacks when being used for processors, particularly that they do not provide a proper orientation of the processor with the socket. By not including alignment guides that enable the proper orientation of the processor into the accompanying socket, these tools do not mitigate the issues of socket or processor damage, and only address a fundamental issue of gripping the processor and securely holding the processor during motion, such as when moving from a workstation to a circuit board for placement.
Some other tools rely on the deformability of plastic to hold a processor. Referring to FIG. 1B, one such tool 120 is shown which allows for the processor to be pushed into a plastic holder by passing the processor beyond a deformable plastic guard, which deforms as the processor passes and then holds the processor in place in the tool. In order to release the processor, the user must push down on the top of the tool, which in turn deforms and spreads the deformable plastic holder and releases the processor, such as for placing the processor into the socket. This design is not without risks, some of which include the installer's actions in pushing the tool into the socket to place and remove the processor. If the tool is not properly aligned with the socket during placement and/or removal of the processor, there is a significant risk of socket and/or processor damage.
Referring to FIG. 1C, another tool design 130 is shown which uses a “tweezer” design, which includes levers that both grip the processor and are actuated to release the processor once gripped. The levers are pressed by a user on one side to release the processor from the tool, and on the other side, the tips of the levers are used as the lift points for the processor. This design inherently causes a high risk of accidental activation of the levers during handling which would release the processor from the grip of the tool, resulting in the processor accidentally falling from the tool and sustaining damage when contacting a surface, such as a workstation, floor, etc.
In addition, none of the presently-used designs allow for pickup of the processor from a socket (for processor removal/installation) or from a carrier commonly used to hold multiple processors in manufacturing plants.
Therefore, what is needed in the industry to reduce the costs associated with processor and/or socket damage is a processor handling tool that securely holds a processor in place, reduces the chance of accidental release of the processor from the tool, can be used to both remove and install processors into and out of a socket, and can be used to remove processors from a processor carrier commonly used in manufacturing plants. Other desirable features include properly positioning the tool, and thus the processor, for proper placement into/out of a socket, and installing or removing a processor from a socket without disturbing a thermal interface material on the greased surface of an already installed processor.